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Original poster

Anyone sent a child as an "unaccompanied minor" on a flight? Thoughts appreciated

41 replies

TheDullWitch · 11/06/2008 11:05

My 12-yr-old has been invited to stay with relatives in Barcelona. Someone will pick him up from the airport. I realise the cheap airlines (EasyJet, RyanAir) don't take kids under 14. So it will have to be BA or the like. Has anyone used the unaccompanied minors service? Did it work out?

OP posts:
dpertejo · 10/07/2015 09:41

Irresponsible Unhuman IBERIA
Last afternoon I took the kids to airport to fly Athens-Madrid/-Oviedo. Kids are 13 and 11 years old. Iberia policy is that kids under 12 are obliged to buy the unaccompanied minor service and over 12 is optional. Said service costs Euro 65 for Athens-Madrid leg and Euro 40 for Madrid- Oviedo leg with Iberia both flights. So I bought the service for my kid of 11 for total Euro 105!!!! When the kids arrived at terminal 4 Madrid airport, one lady to the youngest to the UM room and LEFT THE 13 YEARS OLD ALONE IN THE AIRPORT ON HER OWN!!!! FOR 3 HOURS!!!! Outrageous... Their argument: This is not a NGO (non governmental organization)!!!!

FinallyHere · 10/07/2015 10:07

Nothing but good experiences with BA as an UM in the 70s.

Anyone else still have their Junior Jet Club log book. Haven't asked for it to be signed by the pilot for a few decades. Sigh.

5Foot5 · 10/07/2015 13:21

dpertejo I am a bit confused about what you expected here. You bought the service for one of your children and you got the service you paid for. Were you hoping that they would include your older child and you would thus get two for the price of one?

TwinTum · 10/07/2015 13:30

My sister lives in France and invited my DDs (11) to stay with them this year. We decided against it this year for various reasons but have agreed they can go next year. We will probably go with them one way for a long weekend and the plan is they travel as unaccompanied minors the other way. My thinking is that the year will make a difference as they will be in secondary school by then, plus they will have learnt a bit of French so it might have a bit of benefit from a language perspective (this year I am sure they would speak English the whole time).

dpertejo · 10/07/2015 13:49

I will clarify: of course I would not expect such a thing. But even a robot could have thought to take her up to the door of UM room and tell her where her brother was... the lady just left her outside the gate where they arrived. is that too much?

Lonecatwithkitten · 10/07/2015 13:57

Flybe offer the service. I pop DD on in Southampton the oversee a change at Glasgow/Inverness/Aberdeen/Edinburgh and family pick her up at the tiny airport on a remote Scottish Island.

Taz1212 · 10/07/2015 20:44

Not yet, but we are planning on sending DS(13) to Panama in Feb using BA's unaccompanied minor service. He'll need to fly from Edinburgh to London then London to either New York or Miami (leaning towards Miami right now because of the time of year- wouldn't want him to end up in a blizzard in NY!) then NY/Miami to Panama. He is beyond excited about the trip. Grin

Taz1212 · 10/07/2015 20:45

Ooops, zombie thread! Blush

chiruri · 10/07/2015 20:50

I flew as an unaccompanied minor to the U.S. when I was 9. I was meeting family at the other end, but there was a transfer in London both ways. I remember sitting with a little boy who was also on his own, and we got a special flight pack with toys and colouring books etc. I had a great time.

chiruri · 10/07/2015 20:51

Haha, oops, zombie thread alert! The notice doesn't come up when browsing on mobile!

MagratGarlik · 10/07/2015 20:55

As a child I did it for a couple of years whilst my parents lived in Gibraltar and I was sent to boarding school in the UK. I was aged 10-12 and it was fine. If the flight was overbooked all the unaccompanied children got ungraded to business class and we got taken into the cock-pit. Might have changed a bit since then though.

Maryz · 10/07/2015 20:57

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MagratGarlik · 10/07/2015 20:58

Ha ha. Only just saw this is a zombie thread Smile

CainInThePunting · 10/07/2015 21:03

DS is a frequent flyer, but he has only once flown solo aged 12.
On the occasion he flew alone he was obviously dropped off and picked up at either end and I had my phone on and in my FACE the whole time but the bit in between he was actually taken under the wing of a female passenger. He got no details for her so I could never thank her but she helped him with the change over and the on and off stuff which I know he would have managed fine on his own but to know that someone took the care to make sure he was ok gave me a faith in human kindness that has lasted in me despite the fact that I generally detest humans.
Many thanks if you were that Lady and I've done my best to pay it forward whenever I could.

TalkinPeace · 10/07/2015 21:03

I flew transatlantic on my own from the age of 4 (in the late 60's) onwards
I loved it
You get treated like royalty
Kids love it.

A gym friend flies her DD out to Singapore every school hol (part of divorce agreement) - child says the flight is the best bit Grin

I admit that when I did it, I regularly had my lunch in the cockpit with the crew - pre 9/11

CainInThePunting · 10/07/2015 21:05

What?? Well my thanks still stand even if it is a zombie thread.

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